Smartphone makers like Huawei, Samsung, and Xiaomi all make use of periscope lenses on their devices to better enhance the camera capability of their smartphones but one brand that is still left out of the equation is Apple.

Although the iPhone even though is expensive and comes with great camera hardware, the absence of the periscope lens is still a turn-off to potential users who want to switch from Android devices to an iPhone.

There are newer reports that the next-gen iPhone series could sport a periscope lens as soon as 2023 but another report from popular analysis Ming Chi-Kuo said that it’s only the iPhone 15 Pro Max that could receive the periscope lens which is still a win for the iPhone 15 series by the way.

[Analysis] Apple’s camera supply chain will enter a two-year high-speed growth cycle thanks to iPhone 15’s adoption of a high-ASP periscope design / Apple相機供應鏈將因iPhone 15採用高單價潛望鏡設計而進入連續兩年高速成長週期 @mingchikuo https://t.co/CfUiUe7JQH

— 郭明錤 (Ming-Chi Kuo) (@mingchikuo) July 14, 2022

Considering the fact that the “Pro Max” variant of all iPhone models since its introduction had always enjoyed all the best features, including the periscope zoom capacity on the iPhone 15 Pro Max only might not be a bad thing.

Even at that, Kuo added that until 2024, iPhone 16 Pro could also support the periscope zoom capacity.

Kuo also provides some more technical information on the periscope zoom system itself, which will apparently be the same for the iPhone 15 Pro Max, the iPhone 16 Pro, and the iPhone 16 Pro Max. It’ll be a 1/3″ 12MP sensor with an f/2.8 aperture, sensor-shift support, and a 5–6x optical zoom range.

Apple had made a distinct difference between its Pro and Pro Max variants as they often offer better features compared to their mid-tier counterparts. However, the inclusion of multiple features on the high-end variants will continuously widen the gaps between them and the non-pro variants with rumors having it that Apple could in fact ditch the “Mini” variants.